Be Excellent To Each Other

Some friends are planning a trip to Eastern US, starting in New York and heading down to Virginia. They asked me for recommendations on places to visit, the fools. I thought I'd post it here, to see what else people suggest.

New York
You're probably up to speed with this city so won't spend too long talking about it, other than to mention the Staten Island ferry for a free view of the Statue of Liberty, and Coney Island for that 'seedy seaside resort' vibe.

Washington DC

The Smithsonian Air and Space Museum is awesome! Boys' toys aside, the other Smithsonian Museums in DC are brilliant too.

I queued to go to the National Archives and look at the Constitution, which is proudly displayed in a temple-like rotunda. When I was there, lurking in a forgotten corner was a copy of Magna Carta, looking forlorn and lonely, but I think that's gone elsewhere now.

Touring the Congress is well worth doing but try not to grin too much if the guide mentions about how we burnt it down in 1814. You'll have to check on their website for details on how to visit as it's changed a lot in recent years: http://www.visitthecapitol.gov/

Ford's Theatre has recently been reopened by the National Parks Service and made to look like it did on that fateful night in 1865 but I've not seen it.

Be sure to visit the Lincoln Memorial in the evening and watch the sunset from it. Actually, walking down the Mall in the early evening when people are playing baseball is one of my favourite memories of my time in DC. There's an unintentionally hilarious Boy Scout monument around that area too.

Arlington Cemetary, across the river in Virginia, is deeply moving. Most go to see JFK's eternal flame, but if you go up into the top corner, tucked away are a group of Confederate graves surrounding an extremely odd memorial to the South (see http://cwmemory.com/2009/04/19/calvin-e ... tasy-land/ ). Whilst I think of it, these days both CS and US graves are tended for by the US government, but the former have a different design to the latter. They're pointed at the top, presumably so yankees can't sit on them, as the old joke has it.

Arlington House was Robert E Lee's estate, and whilst the grounds became a cemetery during the Civil War, the house has been preserved and can be toured.

Harper's Ferry, West Virginia

Utterly beautiful preserved town at the point when the Shenandoah meets the Potomac (Jefferson said it was worth the trip across the Atlantic itself!), and cornering three states (West Virginia, Virginia, and Maryland). The view of the town from the hill on the Maryland side is well worth the climb! Really, this is one of my favourite places in the whole world, ever.

It's also historically important as the site of the federal arsenal which abolitionist/madman John Brown tried to seize with the aim of using the weapons to incite a slave revolt in 1859. The siege lasted around two days and was eventually put down, after much bloodshed, by a Colonel Robert E Lee, and Brown was tried for treason and executed in nearby Charles Town. His execution was attended by various military officers later to make a name for themselves and, oddly, a famous actor, John Wilkes Booth. On his way to the gallows he passed an ominous note that read "I, John Brown, am now quite certain that the crimes of this guilty land will never be purged away but with blood". He's a fascinating and very divisive person - it's always fun to ask people into the period what they make of him. We usually try to dodge the question, even though his body is a-mouldering in the grave.

The Shenandoah National Park

This was were a friend and I went hiking. Running the length of the ridge is the Skyline Drive, and most visitors just take this scenic drive and seldom get out of the car to explore, which is a real waste. So long as you don't mind hikes that involve going up and down a lot, there's some great views and walks to be done. We even saw bears and a rattle snake!

Antietam, Maryland

The Battle of Antietam, 17 September 1862, was the single bloodiest day in US history. The battlefield is very well preserved and the landscape really sucks you in. I got goosepimples standing in the cornfield! Go on one of the ranger-led walks.

Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Famous for the Boyds Bear Country Store, a giant shop selling all manner of cuddly things ( http://www.boydsbearcountry.com/ ) set in rolling Pennsylv..oh, wait a minute. Er....

The battlefield is immense, and you can't cover it all in one go. I've been twice and still not made it to the eastern cavalry field! Get the audio tour or go on one of the ranger led walks. I still get a chill when I walk the mile or so of Pickett's Charge, the doomed frontal assault on the Union lines Lee ordered. The new museum and refurbished cylcorama are supposed to be very good, but I only saw the gift shop on my last trip. I recommend Little Round Top, the Angle, the Devil's Den, and walking the route of the charge.

The town itself is very well preserved and picturesque. Avoid the women hustling you for their ghost tours, though. I like to drink at the Reliance Mine Saloon, but everyone else swears by O'Rourke's. If you are going, I wouldn't mind a hat from Dirty Billy's Hat Store, and might want some stuff from the Regimental Quartermaster.

Pamplin Park, near Petersburg, Virginia
http://www.pamplinpark.org/index.html

Depending on how far into Virginia you get, if you get to Petersburg I'd suggest visiting Pamplin Park. Built on the grounds of a plantation house and incorporating parts of the Civil War trench systems that surrounded the city, its museums and living history areas explore social and military life in the 1860s. It is also refreshingly unafraid of discussing slavery and the life of slaves on a Virginian farm.. The park's movie is also uncompromisingly graphic - too many of these visitor centre films gloss over the nastiness of war.
Petersburg itself is quite pretty, and has an 'English pub' so authentic I almost did a doubletake when I wandered into it.

Richmond, Virginia

Jefferson's Capitol is an excellent building, though it's a shame they've now surrounded it with high-rise offices because it must have looked imposing perched above the river. The tour guide I had kept on making cracks about George III (the state flag has Lady Liberty posing over the body of a dead king with the motto 'Sic Semper Tyrannis' underneath) then going on about how awesome it was that the Queen had visited in 2007. Bless. There's an ace alehouse with a bumper selection of craft ales nearby too! The two museums at the Tredgear Iron Works are interesting, as is the Museum of the Confederacy and the Confederate White House (despite being a pain to find). Parts of the town are a bit of a dive, however.

Fredericksbug, Virginia

Another charming town. Sitting in the garden of Chatam House overlooking the city and the Rappahanock river is a delight. Sadly, you're also looking at Marye's Heights, the scene of one of the worst federal assaults in the war. They sent men up a gently sloping hill with no cover whilst the rebels were barricaded by a stone wall. During the 8 hours or so, federal losses were at 1000 men an hour. The scene of the bloodbath has now been built over, aside from the reconstructed wall and the cemetery behind (where an artilley emplacement, the aim of the attack, was). The story of Sergeant Richard Kirkland, who jumped over the wall to give water to dying federal troops and is commemorated by a statue is heartwarming but probably a myth.

Other stuff:

For a good overview of US history, Radio 4's 'America: Empire of Liberty' is brilliant. Each episode is around 15 minutes long and the three series go from the early conquest to the present day.
Tony Horowitz's 'Confederates in the Attic' is the book that got me into the War Between The States

Films:
'Glory' is probably the best non-Buster Keaton ACW movie, focusing on the raising, training, and first engagement of the 54th Massachusetts, one of the first black regiments.
'Gettysburg' gives an excellent overview of the battle and the tactics, marred by fat re-enactors and hideous fake beards. Oh, the beards!
'Cold Mountain' shows the nastiness of the Confederate home front, and opens with the Petersburg crater.
'Gangs of New York' I really, really like. Good to see the New York Draft Riots portrayed on screen, too.
'Gods and Generals' is dreadfully dull - I lasted about two hours and have never returned to it. I'm never getting those two hours back, either.

That's much of what I did back in 1990. We didn't do as much Civil War stuff, but everywhere you've listed I remember as being good.

Colonial Williamsburg, perhaps?

Aye. That was somewhere they said they were going and they sounded very excited about it. I said that one day I'll visit War of Independence battlefields, but onlythe ones we won at.

someone won the civil war?

You wouldn't think that when you tour the south

Go and watch a football game!

That's something I keep on meaning to do (along with baseball).

EDIT: Hmmm... ought to see if they could pick up an Atlanta Braves shirt, though I doubt they'll get to Georgia.

Baseball games are odd to watch. There's a general hum of conversation and people only really cheer every so often. And then, in the seventh.....

A football game is something I really want to do when I can afford to visit america. Preferably in New Orleans.